Clothes Don't Always Make The Woman

Chapter 5

Rarity’s Apartment, Manehatten

After a particularly long week of working on commissions non-stop, I’d finally decided to take a little break. Had I been feeling more self-conscious of my image, I would’ve put some effort into the attire I wore after the jeweling process. But I was simply too exhausted to care. I settled on a tank top and gym shorts. While the diamond geode did make pieces easier to craft overall, it consumed my energy on both the physical and mental level. Not that I was complaining, mind you. Power, whether of the magical or mundane variety, always came with a price.

That being said, I shuffled over to a quaint little pizza shop on the corner called Tonio’s. The restaurant had been there for generations and they used an authentic, coal-fired brick oven to bake all of their pies. Since I’d been running around, sweating like a pig all day, I decided to forgo my normal dietary habits and splurge on a meat lover’s pizza. It had everything a girl with a salt tooth could possibly want! Peperoni, Sausage, Bacon, Ham—you name it~ I was quite certain that Extravagance would love it too. In smaller portions, of course.

As soon as I entered the apartment, Trav camp scampering over to me, his tail wagging back and forth like a happy little metronome. I put the pizza on the counter, picked up my puppy, and gave him a big kiss on the forehead. He responded by licking my face enthusiastically. I allowed him to do so for a little while (I imagine he enjoyed the salty flavor of my sweat), then put him down.

I heard him whuff excitedly when I opened up the pizza box. “Yes, I know how much you love meat. Please be patient, darling. Mommy only just got back from the shop.”

To be quite honest, I desperately wanted to take a good soak in the bathtub first. But the pizza wouldn’t stay hot forever, so I settled for washing my face and hands with warm water and soap. Once that was done, I lifted out a slice and cut it up into bite-sized pieces. I’d made the mistake of giving Trav a whole slice one time before and he’d made an absolute mess of the kitchen! Pizza sauce, greasy cheese, and pepperoni slices were scattered everywhere! When I slid the paper plate in front of him, his pudgy face lit up with unbridled joy. It made me laugh.

I grabbed a slice of my own and started devouring it like a starved maniac. What? Just because I normally have the table manners of a lady, doesn’t mean I have to eat that way ALL the time. My appointment with Dalia should have clued you in on that. Who’s going to judge me anyway? An English Bull Dog busy stuffing his own jowls full of pizza? I don’t think so~

Oh drat! A glob of greasy mozzarella landed on my tank top. Well, at least it’s black and won’t be difficult to wash out. Whenever I had no other choice but to wear clothing, I preferred darker colors like navy blue, black, or magenta. They happened to compliment my light complexion and made stains less noticeable than, say, on white or tan. The same could be applied to lingerie, I suppose. Although, I’d rarely ever had issues with underthings considering that I went commando most of the time. Ugh! Such a crude term. I wish there was a more elegant one.

Even though I’d only ordered a small pizza, it still had eight, generous slices. Upon finishing my fourth slice, I cut up another one for Trav and put the rest in the fridge. One of these nights, when I wasn’t in the mood to cook, I would eat up the rest of it as leftovers. With dinner concluded, I saw no reason to delay my precious bubble bath. I immediately took off my sweaty clothes and chucked them into the waste hamper near the bathroom door.

As was my custom on Friday nights, I poured a flowery concoction of scented oils into the water and topped it off with just a hint of bubble mix. Once the water was high enough, I slid into the tub with satisfied groan. It was one of life’s simplest pleasures, but one that I cherished all the same. Extravagance soon followed, and I picked him up and set him in-between my legs.

While I reclined in the tub and laid my head back upon the bath pillow, I thought back to the email Dalia had sent me. Initially, I’d felt somewhat guilty about skipping the auction at the Charity Gala. No, I didn’t regret it. The time I’d spent with Braeburn was, in my humble opinion, much more important as it gave us a chance to connect and become closer than ever before.

Besides, everyone’d had the chance to get a good look at both me and the jewelry while I was mingling. And during the speech afterwards too. If that wasn’t enough, Dalia had posted high definition photographs of everything as well. To that point, I hope that she focused more on the jewelry than my—mostly—unclad body. I’d already seen a few images of myself in the paper and on various news websites in the days following the Gala. All tasteful, thankfully.

It seemed as though I’d struck a chord with Manehattenites. I was praised for my avant-garde choice of attire, and more importantly, my dedication to charitable causes. As for the buyer? Well, one need look no further than Mr. Sombra. I can’t say I was terribly surprised to find out that he’d bought the entire set. The amount, however, was what nearly gave me a heart attack. Everything had sold for a whopping three million dollars! I’m not ashamed to admit that I fainted upon reading the figure. Thankfully, Trav was nearby to lick me back to consciousness.

Mr. Sombra even went so far as to email me and show me a picture of it on display in his home. He told me that it was worth every single penny he spent and more. A priceless treasure beyond compare, crafted by a talented beauty. He was such a charmer~ No wonder Braeburn was so jealous. I mean, had I not known that Mr. Sombra was staunchly homosexual, I would’ve gladly rubbed my body all over his muscular—EHEM! Ok, Rarity. Let’s not think about him too much.

Seeing as how I’d just eaten half a pizza on my own, I decided that alcohol was probably not the best choice of beverage for me during my bath. Instead of my usual goblet of wine, I opted to sip on a nice, hot cup of Oolong to help settle my nerves. The honey and lemon wedge weren’t strictly necessary but I always went the extra mile when it came to tea. Like a proper lady!

I yawned while massaging Trav’s head. “Goodness. I’m a lot more exhausted than I initially thought. If I’m not careful, I might very well end up falling asleep in the tub.”

Trav looked back at me and snorted.

“Have you no faith in me, darling? I promise that you won’t have to wake me up again.”

Trav simply gave me a non-committal whuf and nuzzled my leg. Who knows what he was actually thinking? Some days, I found myself jealous of Fluttershy’s geode. It must have been amazing to be able to communicate with animals as if they were human beings. Well, I imagine some people would be jealous of my powers too under certain circumstances. Having seen what happens when said powers are abused firsthand (Sunset Shimmer came to mind), I always made it a point to never take them for granted or flaunt them openly in public.

My own family was only vaguely aware of my gift. It is an unavoidable topic of discussion when one’s friends have similar gifts as well. I took the bull by the horns and decided to tell them about if first before they started asking questions. They were very supportive of me, as always. At the time, I was terrified that they would treat me differently because of my mystical abilities but they took it all in stride and said that the geode suited me.

We all had a big family hug and a nice, long cry afterwards. Well, more so my sister, mother, and I. Father had always been… a man’s man, so to speak. He tended to reign in his emotions most of the time. It had more to do with his job than anything else, I think. He was the head coach of the Baltimare Badgers. Yes, you heard correctly. The Baltimare Badgers from the illustrious Equestrian Football League. And for quite some time too. Fifteen years to be exact.

His profession was one of the reasons why our family was so well to do. We weren’t the type to flaunt our wealth in front of others, but I never had to worry about how to pay for college or buying my own apartment in Manehatten. Father had insisted that I didn’t need to pay him back for the expenses, but I insisted. When I finally handed him the check, he gave me a big hug and said how proud of me he was. I considered myself fortunate to have such a loving father.

It was quite possibly one of the most emotional moments I’d ever shared with him. Other than the incident in grade school, that is. To this day, I can still picture his expression. A deep frown set upon his lips, and glassy eyes. He was so upset that he’d gone mute and his body trembled with unimaginable rage. When he spoke to the principal later that day about the incident, his voice was filled with icy venom, cold enough to frighten even the most composed individual.

I was upset at the time too, but I’ll never forget what happened. As it turns out, the school district was negligent when it came to addressing the issue of bullying. Teachers and staff would often do very little to stop it. Even if a formal complaint was filed. With his connections to various news organizations, my father made sure that the incident was highly publicized. The principal wound up resigning in disgrace and stricter rules were enacted to protect students.

I’m just glad that Sweetie never had to deal with any of that nonsense. By all accounts, our friends and neighbors in Ponyville were far more accommodating than the ones in Whinnyapolis. From what I understand, Sweetie was also transparent about our lifestyle and had told her friends as such. They seemed to accept her with open arms and treated her exactly the same as before. It was an immense relief for me. I was terrified that she’d be bullied like I’d been.

My reverie down memory lane was abruptly brought to a halt when I heard my phone vibrate. I kept it on a plastic tray just in case there was some kind of emergency, but I wasn’t too keen on chatting with anyone during bath time. I dried off my hands and swiped the screen to see who it was. Speak of the devil… it was my father! He called occasionally to check up on me but his calls were few and far between. It was usually Sweetie or Mother who called. I immediately hit the accept call button and put him on speaker.

“Good evening, daddy. How are you doing?”

“Hey there, Rare-Bear,” he replied, “I’m doing pretty good. Saw your picture in the paper yesterday. Said your jewelry sold for a few million. That’s really something, don’tcha know.”

“Yes, I was astounded by the amount as well.”

Father hummed in agreement. “Can you imagine my surprise when I saw my girl dressed up in nothing but paint? Took some real cahoonas to do that in front of all those fancy Manhatten folks. Regardless, ya look great and I’m proud of ya. Your mother and sister are too.”

I found myself blushing. “Thank you, daddy. I wanted to make sure we raised plenty of money for charity. I—um—there were quite a few requests for commissions thereafter. That’s why I’ve been so busy as of late. Tell mother I’m sorry for not calling her sooner.”

“Nah, it’s alright. We understand that you’ve got your own life to live now.”

I lifted my foot out of the tub and wiggled my toes. “How are things going in Ponyville?”

“Eh… nothing too exciting. Your sister’s been having some personal issues.”

“Issues? Of what nature? Is she hurt or sick?”

Father chuckled awkwardly. “Not exactly. She’s—uh—oh gosh. I’m not sure that she’d want me to say anything about it. Let’s just say that she’s REALLY starting to resemble her mother… in many different ways. Ya know, like transforming into a beautiful, young lady.”

Ah, so that’s what it was. As naturists, we were always comfortable with our bodies. However, as I mentioned before, any physical changes that occurred were immediately noticeable. Sweetie, being the tender age of sixteen, meant that she was in the late stages of puberty. I hadn’t seen her nude in a while, so there’s no telling how much she’d matured since then. Given mother’s… physique, it was safe to assume that Sweetie’s feminine assets had grown considerably.

“Oh goodness! She’s caught the attention of her male peers, hasn’t she?”

“You betcha. Your mother has talked to her about it but I don’t think Sweetie knows how to deal with being… buxom yet. Gah! I feel like a creep for talking about my own daughter that way. I just don’t know how else to describe it, though. She’s filling out everywhere, Rare-Bear.”

I giggled despite my sister’s predicament. “I completely understand, daddy. When I see her again, I’ll be sure to have long chat with Sweetie about it. I promise.”

“Appreciate it. Now that we’re on the subject of seeing your sister, I’d like to invite you to our annual family vacation. Since ya haven’t gone with us in a few years, I thought it’d be… nice if ya came along this time. It’d be a good chance to reconnect and whatnot. Whaddaya say?”

You can’t imagine how much I needed a vacation. I’d practically worked non-stop since my university days, and any time off I had since was few and far between. Luckily, the vast majority of my commissions from the Gala had already been completed at this point. My geode powers owing much to the speed and precision with which I could craft high-quality pieces. It was only about mid-June, early for a summer vacation, but not unreasonably so.

I took a sip of tea and pondered to myself. “I’d really love to go, daddy. But there are a few things that I would need to work out first. First and foremost, would you mind if I brought along my boyfriend? He’s been working hard too and I think it would do him some good to relax.”

“Erm—boyfriend? When did this happen?”

I sighed mentally. Even though he always meant well, my father tended to gloss over such things. I know for a fact that I told Sweetie and Mother about Braeburn. “A little while ago. His name is Braeburn Apple. We’ve only known each other since high school.”

“Oh! He’s one of the Apples! Sorry, Rare-Bear. My mind’s been on training camp lately. We’re good friends with them too. Well, the ones in living in Ponyville at any rate. Does he—uh—know that we’re all naturists?”

“Yes, I told him. I wanted to make it perfectly clear to Braeburn what sort of lifestyle I’ve adopted. Otherwise, keeping it hidden from him would have been a betrayal of trust.”

Father cleared his throat. “Can’t say I disagree with ya on that. Does he know that we usually go to a naturist resort every summer? Being nude around your partner is one thing, but to be around a lot of people all at once is… a different matter entirely. Is he comfortable with that?”

“I honestly don’t know, daddy. Up until now, I wasn’t even aware that I would be going to a naturist resort anytime soon to test such a theory. I shall simply have to ask him.”

I could tell that my father was blushing, given the hesitant tone of his voice. “Hmm. A fair point. I just want to make sure he treats ya right. It’d break my heart if he left ya over something like that. Some folks don’t understand our way of life and never will. It’s sad but true.”

“I don’t believe there’s any need to worry about Braeburn. He might feel little uncomfortable with the idea at first, but I’m sure that I can convince him to come along with us. Who knows? Perhaps, he might even take a liking to naturism. Please do me a favor and try not to be overbearing, though. Braeburn’s treated me with the utmost respect thus far. I’d rather not have to deal with him feeling nervous around you all the time. Do we have an understanding, daddy?”

Father laughed nervously. “Crystal clear, Rare-Bear. You know I only want what’s best for ya.”

“I know. And I shall forever be grateful for that.”

I heard father shift in his chair a few times. It was an obvious sign that he was trying to avoid an emotional conversation with me that he clearly wasn’t prepared for. Instead, as was his custom, he plowed forward with a more practical topic. I wasn’t at all surprised by it but I felt slightly disappointed nonetheless. “So… we’re thinking about going on vacation in about two weeks. Gotta make sure Sweetie is finished with school. Does that sound like a good plan?”

“I’ll have to check my calendar and make sure that all of my commissions are completely finished before then. Someone will also need to look after Extravagance while I’m gone and I’ll have to see what Braeburn’s schedule is like. He’s rather busy most of the time too. If all of those details are agreeable, then I don’t see any reason why we can’t join you.”

“Well, that’s honestly the best answer I could hope for. I know it would make your mother and sister very happy to see ya again. I’ll be sure to book a separate bungalow in case ya want some privacy with your boyfriend. Hehe! Ya know, since it’s a romantic setting and all…”

A rosy blush colored my cheeks. “I agree, daddy. I think that’s a prudent decision.”

“I’ll—erm—make the arrangements, then. It was nice talking to ya, Rare-Bare. See ya soon.”

“Have a good night.” I replied.

With our conversation concluded, I slid deeper into the water until it reached my chin. There were times when I swear that Trav could sense what I was feeling. Whether by design or not, he turned around and looked at me directly in the eyes. I reached out and rubbed his ears. He always liked it when I did that. After letting out a soft whuf, he prodded my thigh with his snout.

“You’re probably wondering what I’m so anxious about, aren’t you?”

Trav sat patiently and awaited my answer.

“Ha! I suppose there’s no harm in telling you. It’s been so long since I’ve… had an intimate relationship with anyone. Much less a person whom I can honestly admit that I’m in love with. I’m terribly out of practice, Trav! It’s been years! You know how things are at naturist resorts.”

Extravagance cocked his head inquisitively.

“No, of course I don’t mean they’re—UGH! What I meant to say is that young couples, who are bereft of clothing, and in a romantic setting tend to engage in certain types of activities together. Ok, fine! I’ll just lay it out for you plainly! We’re going to be tempted to have sex.”

Trav whined at my harsh tone. I leaned forward and kissed him. It seemed to assuage his fear.

“My apologies, darling. I didn’t mean to sound so crass. But it’s the truth! Even though I’ve been a naturist my entire life, I am still a perfectly healthy, fertile woman at the end of the day. I have needs, desires, fantasies! Who amongst us doesn’t? It shall be even more tempting to Braeburn because he’s not accustomed to seeing everyone in the nude yet. How do I even approach this?”

Trav whuffed and licked my fingers.

“I suppose I’ll just have to take things one step at a time with Braeburn. Perhaps, a frank discussion of the matter would do us both some good. It’s just so… embarrassing to admit my shortcomings. At any rate, if I stress out about this now, I’ll never get any sleep tonight.”

As it turns out, I didn’t get much sleep last night despite my best efforts to calm myself down with tea and breathing exercises. It is as they say: “An idle mind is bound to wander”. Judge me as you wish, but I got up much later and much crankier than usual. After a quick shower to freshen up, I glanced over at the clock and realized that it was already a quarter till eleven. No point in eating breakfast, I suppose. A Saturday brunch it was. I set about trying to find all the appropriate accoutrements for a midday meal in the kitchen.

With the coffee pot brewing and the bacon cooking in the oven, I decided to give Braeburn a call. I wanted to invite him over to my apartment so that we could share a meal together. It was what one might call a stay at home date. The best part about this arrangement is that I didn’t have to worry about what to wear or how much money to bring along. If I wasn’t going out, I wasn’t going to bother putting on any clothes. I giggled to myself at the thought. Casual attire indeed.

By coincidence or fate (whatever you may believe) he had today off from his normal duties. I was quite happy to hear that as I hadn’t been able to spend much time with him as of late. It was the direct result of having a successful business enterprise. On both of our ends, mind you. Being busy in that sense was a blessing that I accepted graciously. Until the Gala, I hadn’t realized how popular Apple Family brand liquor was with the upper class. I knew it was of the highest quality, of course. But once I’d tasted a shot of whiskey, it immediately became apparent to me how flavorful and smooth it was. Braeburn certainly knew his craft!

About fifteen minutes after our call, he arrived at my apartment. Upon hearing the bell ring, I opened the door (sans my customary silk robe), and with a furious blush, he shuffled inside. “Good day to you, Braeburn. Please make yourself comfortable. Our brunch should be ready shortly. Would you like some coffee in the mean time?”

“Uh… yeah, that sounds good. Thanks.”

When I returned from the kitchen with his coffee in hand, I found Braeburn sitting on the couch. His posture was rigid and it was abundantly clear to me that he was uncomfortable. With a heavy sigh, I deposited his mug atop the coffee table and took a seat next to him. I reached over and placed my hand on his leg, stroking it gently a few times. He still seemed rather tense.

“What’s wrong, darling? Am I… making you feel uncomfortable?”

Braeburn bit his lip. “I’m sorry, Rarity. Ah should be used ta ya bein’ nekkid by now but…”

“Ah~ So that’s what it is. Why don’t we try a little experiment, hmm?”

Braeburn carefully glanced over at me. “What did ya have in mind?”

“I want us to spend the rest of the afternoon together completely nude.”

Braeburn bit his lip. “Ah dunno if that’s a good idea, Rarity. What if Ah—”

“You have absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. If you get another erection, then so be it. That’s simply how a man’s body functions. I just want you to get used to idea of casual nudity. Neither my parents nor my sister wear clothing the vast majority of the time. How do you expect to meet them if you’re this nervous just being around me? Take a deep breath and relax.”

Braeburn did as I suggested, but he didn’t seem all that relaxed to me. Hmm. How do I approach this situation without being forceful about it? An idea came to mind instantly, yet I wasn’t sure what his reaction would be. Would he resent it? Would he become angry? Would he… storm out of the apartment, humiliated and confused? Despite my trepidation, he needed to understand that there was nothing wrong with being nude. I encouraged him to stand.

“Here’s what I’m going to do. Piece by piece, I shall remove your clothing for you. That way, you’ll get used to the sensation gradually rather than all at once. How does that sound?”

Braeburn blushed but nodded in agreement.

I started with his flannel t-shirt first. Unbuttoning it carefully, until I was able to slide it off of his broad shoulders. To reassure him, I planted a soft kiss onto the center of his bare chest. He reached over and rubbed my shoulder in return. So far, I was encouraged by his response. Next came the jeans. Those were a bit more awkward to remove because of the denim fabric, but we got the job done. All that was left now was his briefs.

I crouched onto my knees and slid my fingers underneath the waistband. Pulling them down gently, I was greeted by a tuft of his orange-blonde hair and his semi-turgid member. It became readily apparent that he was in the process of getting an erection. I could see it happening, albeit slowly, right in front of my eyes. The little voice in the back of my mind urged me to reach out and begin stroking his manhood. What would it taste like? What would it smell like—I quickly dismissed such unladylike thoughts. This exercise was about trust, not desire.

Just like that, he and I were nude together once more. Even so, there was an incredibly awkward air of tension between us, only further fueled by his fully erect penis. The poor dear. I felt like it was entirely my fault that he’d gotten that way and I was tempted to offer him a reprieve from it. He made a token gesture of trying to cover himself up but it was pointless, given the sheer girth of his member. Oh goodness! I couldn’t stop looking at it! Ok, Rarity. Get ahold of yourself.

“You see, darling? It’s not so HARD being nude once you—”

I immediately regretted my poor choice of words. Why did I have to phrase it that way?!!

Braeburn’s cheeks flushed. “Hells bells. Guess Ah got no self-control…”

“No, it’s perfectly fine! I’m not upset, Braeburn. In fact, it’s my fault for not taking into account that you might interpret my actions as being sensuous. I’m so sorry. Please forgive me.”

He grabbed hold of my shoulders and caressed them with the utmost care. “Nah, it’s like ya said: Ah gotta get used ta ya bein’ a naturist somehow. Yer just so beautiful that Ah can’t help mahself whenever Ah look at ya without anythin’ on.”

I pressed my forehead against Braeburn’s, and ran my fingers through his hair. Even though his words had touched me, an icy knot formed deep within the pit of my stomach. Taking responsibility for one’s actions isn’t always an easy task. “I’m overjoyed to hear you say that, Braeburn. Truly, I am. But I still feel guilty about evoking such a… strong reaction from you in the first place. Would you like me to—ah—take care of the problem?”

“As much as I’d enjoy it, I’m gonna have ta decline. Ah want our first time bein’ intimate together ta be special, not somethin’ forced by circumstances, ya know? Although, Ah do appreciate the offer, Rarity. Mighty generous of ya regardless.”

When I pressed my lips against his in an affectionate kiss, a wave of relief flooded my entire body. Would I have actually gone through with pleasuring him had he said yes? It’s not as though the idea was offensive to me, but I just… wasn’t ready to put myself out there like that quite yet. The spark was definitely there, oh yes! I had no doubt that when the time was right for the both of us, we would make passionate, satisfying love to one another.

I wrapped my arms around his waist and pulled him into a tight embrace. It felt so much better than usual because there was no pesky clothing in the way. “I love you, Braeburn Apple.”

He whispered the same to me under his breath, as if it was difficult for him to say it aloud. I could certainly understand the sentiment. Those three words were so simple yet they held an immense amount of meaning and weight behind them. My parents always taught me to never utter the phrase unless I truly meant it. Otherwise, it was merely an overused platitude.

We held each other like that for what felt like hours, basking in the warmth of each other’s skin. Eventually, Braeburn’s erection subsided and was completely forgotten about while we ate brunch together, laughed, and conversed about trivial things. It was lovely. I also happened to notice that he was becoming much more comfortable lounging around in the nude as time passed. It made me hopeful that our conversation about the family trip would go smoothly.

With out bellies full, we decided that a movie was in order. I suggested we watch a documentary about the wild songbirds of the tropics. Mind you, I didn’t want to watch anything too romantic, lest we get into the mood again. Much to my surprise, he agreed. Braeburn laid down on the couch and scooted over so that I could recline in front of him. It was somewhat like spooning but the most important part was that we got to snuggle. Like all proper couples should.

Oh, how marvelous it was! I felt warm, safe, relaxed, elated, and loved all at once! To be quite honest, I’d never felt this way about anyone before. I suppose it was because I’d never cared about any of my previous boyfriends as much as I did with Braeburn. About halfway through the documentary, I rolled over, wrapped my arms around him, and rested my head against his chest while our legs intertwined. Before I knew it, we were both fast asleep.

Roughly forty-five minutes later, my eyelids fluttered open and I peered over at the clock. The TV itself had shut off automatically long beforehand and the only sound in the room was the background noise of Manehatten. It was only a little past two thirty in the afternoon. Trav seemed to have taken a queue from us and was enjoying a nap as well. You’d think a bulldog like him would snore, but he was actually a very quiet sleeper.

For a moment, I took in a deep breath and relished Braeburn’s natural scent. It was surprisingly complex. Cologne was the primary ingredient. Probably one of those generic brands that men tend to use for just about every occasion. Even so, I still liked it. Next was an undercurrent of muskiness and sweat. It wasn’t unpleasant, per say, but I suppose one could describe it as being distinctly masculine and… well, Braeburn. I took one more sniff and kissed his chest.

Braeburn awoke and slid his hands over my butt cheeks, caressing them gently. I shivered in response. “Mmm. That was a pretty good nap. Needed it after such a hectic week. Not to mention, it’s always better when ya wake up in the arms of a beautiful woman.”

Two can play at that game! I reached over and did the same to his bottom. “Agreed, Darling.”

Not much else was said between us for a little while. There was plenty of kissing, snuggling, and exploratory touches but nothing that would have constituted as foreplay. I got the distinct impression that Braeburn was testing the boundaries of what was acceptable with me. And to be honest, I was doing the same with him. It was just something one did during a relationship. Sensing an opportunity when I saw one, I decided to bring up my family’s plans for the summer.

“Braeburn, there’s an important topic that I’d like to discuss with you.”

“Umm… it ain’t somethin’ gravely serious, is it?” Braeburn replied nervously.

“Of course, not,” I assured, “I spoke with my father yesterday and he invited me to come along with him on the annual Belle Family Vacation. It would also include my sister and mother.”

“Oh. Well, that sounds nice. Ah always enjoyed mah family get-togethers.”

I played with a few strands of his chest hair. “Would you be interested in coming along with me? I haven’t seen my family in quite some time and I’d like them to meet you.”

“Yer pa’s not the overprotective type, is he? I don’t wanna make things awkward if—”

I let out an irritated huff. “He is, in fact. But we have an understanding! You see, my family is already well aquatinted with the Apples due to Sweetie and Apple Bloom being best friends. Not to worry though; I already told him we were dating, and that you were of noble character.”

“Alright. Ah guess it wouldn’t be so bad, then. Where are they stayin’?”

I slid my fingers along Braeburn’s hip. “A place in the southern tropics called Cala Concha.”

“Really? Sounds fancy.”

I nodded. “It’s an exclusive, semi-private resort owned by mother’s best friend. They’ve known each other for many years, and she often lets us stay there for free. Erm—however, there is one important detail regarding the resort that you should know about before agreeing to anything.”

“What’s that?”

I cleared my throat, hoping that Braeburn would still be interested after revealing a certain caveat. “Cala Concha is a naturist resort, darling. Not clothing optional, mind you. But full nudity, all the time, every day. It’s a regulation that’s strictly enforced due to the zoning laws… or so I was led to believe. Braeburn, I understand if you need a moment to think this over. It’s not something that I would normally ask of someone who isn’t accustomed to our lifestyle.”

Braeburn stewed in silence for a long time, or so it felt like to me. His expression was difficult to read. Somewhere between trepidation, confusion, and frustration. I can’t say that I blame him. It’s not an easy thing to do, being nude in front of so many people if you’ve never done it before. That and if you bundled it with the pressure of meeting my equally unclothed family, it made for a rather stressful scenario. I made sure to rub his back softly as a show of support. At the very least, it seemed to have made his muscles a little less tense.

“Rarity, Ah appreciate yer honesty. Takes a lot of guts ta mention somethin’ like that. Ah dunno what exactly I’m tryin’ ta say. It’s—umm—this whole situation ain’t anythin’ like I’ve ever dealt with before. If it’s that important to ya that Ah go, then… the choice is clear, Ah reckon.”

My heart fluttered in anticipation. “Does that mean… you’ll come with me?”

Braeburn let out an uneasy sigh and grasped my hand. “Yeah, I’ll go along. Just don’t expect me ta act like everyone bein’ nekkid ain’t a big deal. ‘Cause it is ta a fella like me. I’m havin’ enough trouble gettin’ used ta seein’ ya in yer birthday suit. Please be patient and understandin’ with me is all I’m askin’. Other than that, Ah reckon that Ah could use a vacation.”

I hugged him tightly and squealed. “I promise that we’ll have lots of fun together!”